Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to restricting cross border hiring to put an end to out-of-town taxi drivers operating in areas in which they (1) do not have a licence, and (2) threaten the safety of the public.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The response to the report by the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing issued on 12 February committed to bring forward legislation to enable national minimum standards in licensing, enable greater enforcement powers for licensing officers and to establish a national licensing database to assist in the sharing of relevant information. Legislation will be brought forward when time allows.
Taxis and private hire vehicle drivers are all subject to a ‘fit and proper’ assessment; any driver who poses a risk to public safety should not be permitted to hold a licence. Drivers are permitted to undertake pre-booked work outside of the area in which they are licensed. As set out in the Government’s response, the Government will consider how restrictions on out-of-area journeys might work in practice, with a view to legislating.
The Government response to the Task and Finish Group report explained that, since the Law Commission concluded in 2014 that a statutory definition of plying for hire would not be a practical improvement on the current position and there being no change in the legal situation, the Government would not take forward that recommendation.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to legislate to reform the regulations governing the taxi and private hire trades; and if so, when.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The response to the report by the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing issued on 12 February committed to bring forward legislation to enable national minimum standards in licensing, enable greater enforcement powers for licensing officers and to establish a national licensing database to assist in the sharing of relevant information. Legislation will be brought forward when time allows.
Taxis and private hire vehicle drivers are all subject to a ‘fit and proper’ assessment; any driver who poses a risk to public safety should not be permitted to hold a licence. Drivers are permitted to undertake pre-booked work outside of the area in which they are licensed. As set out in the Government’s response, the Government will consider how restrictions on out-of-area journeys might work in practice, with a view to legislating.
The Government response to the Task and Finish Group report explained that, since the Law Commission concluded in 2014 that a statutory definition of plying for hire would not be a practical improvement on the current position and there being no change in the legal situation, the Government would not take forward that recommendation.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance they provide to encourage operators of public service vehicles, including taxis, to switch to electrically powered vehicles, in order to meet their de-carbonisation targets.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Since 2010 the Government has provided almost £150 million to bus operators and local authorities to support the purchase of the cleanest buses. In February 2019 the winners of the £48 million Ultra-Low Emission Bus Scheme were announced, providing funding to support the purchase of 263 zero emission buses and supporting infrastructure.
The Government continues to run the £50m Plug-in Taxi Grant Scheme, which offers up to £7,500 on the price of eligible ultra-low emission taxis. We have also awarded just over £20m in funding across 27 local authorities to install over 900 chargepoints dedicated to ultra-low emission taxis and private hire vehicles.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government by what date they aim to remove all petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles from the UK’s roads.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Cars and vans account for the majority of road transport emissions. By 2050 we want almost every car and van in the UK to be zero emission. We will end the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2040.
The Government’s 2018 Road to Zero Strategy sets out a clear pathway to achieving this, to give clarity and certainty to both industry and motorists. By 2030 we want at least half of new cars sold, and as many as 70%, to be ultra low emission, alongside up to 40% of new vans.
The Government’s long term goal is the development and deployment of zero emission technologies for all road vehicles, including HGVs and buses, and zero emission technologies are starting to emerge even for the largest vehicles.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of why sales of electric cars in the UK have fallen behind sales in other European countries.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
In 2018 the UK was the second largest market for ultra-low emission vehicles and the fourth largest market for battery electric vehicles. The UK is also global leader in the development and manufacture of electric vehicles; in 2018 a fifth of battery electric cars sold in Europe were made in the UK. So far in 2019, sales of battery electric vehicles have increased significantly, up by 54% over the same period in 2018. Our Road to Zero Strategy sets out a clear pathway to zero emissions, to give clarity and certainty to both industry and motorists.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of how the reduction of the plug-in vehicle grant will effect meeting their carbon reduction targets.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
No such assessment has been made. The Plug-in Car Grant has helped the plug-in hybrid market become more established, and the Government will now focus its support on zero emission models like pure electric and hydrogen fuel cell cars. We want to see at least 50%, and as many as 70%, of new car sales being ultra low emission by 2030. This is in line with the Committee for Climate Change progress report. The Government will continue to work with industry to achieve our ambitions, and will review progress towards them by 2025.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what priority they will give to ensuring continued access to the EU’s Open Skies deregulated aviation market in the negotiations to leave the EU.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government plans to negotiate the best possible relationship between the UK and the EU in the field of aviation with a smooth and orderly transition. The Department for Transport is working closely with the industry to best understand their requirements and to ensure that the outcome of the negotiations serves the interests of both passengers and the aviation industry.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further measures they plan to take to encourage the take-up of electric or hybrid vehicles and to deter the use of petrol and diesel powered vehicles.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK package of support for the uptake and manufacture of ultra low emission vehicles (ULEVs) is already one of the most comprehensive in the world. This Government is investing over £600 million this Parliament, including a tax regime favourable towards less polluting vehicles, to ensure that almost all cars and vans are zero emission vehicles by 2050. We expect to make further announcements on this agenda in due course.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with Gloucestershire County Council regarding the budget required to repair local roads in the county.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Whilst no specific discussions have been held with Gloucestershire County Council in respect to local highways maintenance budgets, the Department for Transport officials meet with officers from all local highway authorities in respect to a wide range of local transport issues on a regular basis.
The Government has committed record levels of investment, over £6 billion, to highways maintenance up to 2020/21, including a Pothole Action Fund totalling £250 million in this Parliament. From this funding we are allocating over £95 million to the council to help improve the condition of the local roads for which Gloucestershire County Council are responsible.